GIVING THANKS

Have you ever looked around at your life and thought about what you have to be thankful for?  Now I want you to stop for a moment and don't look at your all that is wrong, look at what is good.  I know some of you may be feeling like there is nothing good in your life right now.  Maybe your marriage is in shambles, maybe you have a bad diagnosis from the doctor, maybe the collection agency has called you for the umpteenth time.  I understand trust me...life is hard.  It's so easy to focus on everything that is wrong.  It's so easy to see every mistake and every flaw, It's easy to focus on the negative, but how about for today we make a list of the good things in our lives.

Okay...you're reading this so obviously you have eyes to see,  you're reading this so i assume you have a computer and the internet which means you have electricity.  Do you have a roof over your head (even if that roof is in need of repair)?  Do you have running water in your home?  Do you have heat and air conditioning?  Are you breathing?  (Obviously if you're reading this, you are breathing.)  I could go on and on about the good things in all of our lives.  I challenge you to make a list of all the good things, all the positive things.

I know for me this works wonder for my attitude of gratitude.  Whenever I feel down or depressed I think of every blessing, yes I said blessing, in my life.  I have even began to count the storms and valleys in my life as blessings.  Why?  Because it during those storms that I learn the most about myself and my God.  It is in the valleys that I cling to Him the most.  If everything is my life is always good and perfect, why would I need God?   If I could do everything and get everything I wanted, why would I need God? 

  Psalm 100:4  Enter His gates with thanksgiving ad His courts with praise;  give thanks to Him and praise His name.

This is Thanksgiving week, a time to look back at all of our blessings and give thanks.  Thank you God for our forefathers who risked their lives to come here to America.  Thank you God for America, as imperfect as it is, it is still a great place to live.  Thank you God for being able to worship You without fear and to praise You openly.  I thank God for making me who I am.  I thanks God for my family and friends, for a roof over my head and food to eat.  I thank God for running water and air to breathe.  I thank God for all of you.  

COME HOME

Habakkuk 3:3b-4 His Glory covered the heavens and His praise filled the Earth.  His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from His hand, where His power was hidden.

The rays sparkle on the ocean like a fine diamond, the colors of orange and gold and blue cover the sky as the sun begins its journey to the other side of the world.  As the sun kisses the ocean and the rays from the sun shoot out like arrows piercing the clouds,  the feeling of God's love overwhelms me and warms my soul.  It awakens a spirit of love, grace and mercy in me that I cannot hide. I stand in awe as I feel His very presence surround me.  As the sun disappears from my sight, the skies light up with reds and pinks, oranges and gold.  The amazing thing is that as the sun sets for me, it is rising for someone else somewhere else.

It's so easy to take the sunshine for granted, after all it's always been there.  Everyday it rises and sets like clock work.  Even on a cloudy day, we know it's there.  Taking the sun for granted may sound silly but think about it for a minute.  What would this world be like without the sun?  Would there be a world without the sun?  Could we survive without the sun?  The sun is an essential part of our life, like the air we breathe and the food we eat.  If we take the sun for granted, what else or who else are we taking for granted?

Are we so wrapped up in work and making a living that we take the people in our lives for granted?   Are we so wrapped up in social media that we take our health for granted?  Are we so wrapped up with "keeping up with the Kardashians" that we take for granted the blessings God has given us?  Look around where you are right now, who and what are the blessings in your life right now that you are taking for granted?  I know I'm guilty as charged.  I take my husband for granted so much.  I take my health for granted.  I take my family for granted. And I am afraid to admit, I take God for granted.

How about you?  Do you take God for granted also?  Do you assume, like I do, that He will always be there for you?  The important thing to remember about God is that He will always be there for you.  If you have turned your back on God it's not too late to come back into His presence.  He is waiting for you with open arms.  He has the power to forgive and the power to help us live the life He has for us.  He loves you and I so much that we cannot even begin to comprehend how deep His love for us is.  Come back home today.  Don't wait another day.  He's waiting for you.